We arrived in Tulsa safely, thank God! We were able to get ready to leave quicker than we anticipated, so we left Wednesday afternoon. We stayed Wednesday night just south of the Twin Cities, and made it to Tulsa yesterday evening.
Everything is so different here from what I have gotten used to. I was telling Amanda yesterday that it feels like I've been out of the world for a while. It has been a long time since I saw so much traffic, so many stores... It is strange! The weather is so different here, too. We went from late winter to late spring within just a few hours of highway! I knew it would be warmer, but we still packed warm clothes and jackets; they certainly are not needed here, but we'll probably be thankful for having them when we head back north.
I was able to see Dad last night, and his prognosis might be better than we first thought. But we just don't know yet. I am grateful to everyone for the prayers. The keyboard of Chuck's laptop is difficult for me to type on, so please excuse any typos.
God bless!
Friday, March 30, 2007
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Heading to Tulsa
We are planning to take a trip to see our families. We will probably leave early on Thursday, stay Thursday night somewhere in the area of St. Louis, and arrive in Tulsa late Friday. We can only stay a little less than a week, but I hope it will be a good visit. There are many relatives that the children and I haven't seen in a little more than two years!
Chuck flew home yesterday, and only barely made it thanks to incredibly thick fog. Driving up to the airport, visibility couldn't have been more than 10 yards or so in some places. The plane that was supposed to land at 1:30 was diverted to Marquette a few hours later! When I finally reached Chuck on his cell phone, he told me that if they couldn't land in half an hour, they would be sent back to Minneapolis. The children and I went to the grocery store to get some things to make sandwiches, and I told them, "We will just have to pray for the fog to lift." Sure enough, when we drove back the fog was greatly diminished, and by the time Chuck's plane landed there was none at all. God is so good!
I was able to talk to my sister, Melissa, today; she had only this morning been able to speak to an actual doctor regarding Dad's condition. It sounds as if he is out of danger of imminent death, but he is still a very sick man. Please continue to keep him in your prayers, and while you're at it please pray for our safe travel.
God bless!
Today I wanted to get all the clothes washed, but this wet and muddy weather isn't helping with that goal. Every time anybody went outside they came back in with soaking pants and socks! We also got some more hay and then cleaned out the van. Tomorrow we will finish laundry, pack, and clean house.
Chuck flew home yesterday, and only barely made it thanks to incredibly thick fog. Driving up to the airport, visibility couldn't have been more than 10 yards or so in some places. The plane that was supposed to land at 1:30 was diverted to Marquette a few hours later! When I finally reached Chuck on his cell phone, he told me that if they couldn't land in half an hour, they would be sent back to Minneapolis. The children and I went to the grocery store to get some things to make sandwiches, and I told them, "We will just have to pray for the fog to lift." Sure enough, when we drove back the fog was greatly diminished, and by the time Chuck's plane landed there was none at all. God is so good!
I was able to talk to my sister, Melissa, today; she had only this morning been able to speak to an actual doctor regarding Dad's condition. It sounds as if he is out of danger of imminent death, but he is still a very sick man. Please continue to keep him in your prayers, and while you're at it please pray for our safe travel.
God bless!
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Prayer Request
My Dad is in the ICU and he is very seriously sick. I am so sorry that I cannot be there with everybody.
Please just pray for God's mercy.
God bless!
Please just pray for God's mercy.
God bless!
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Back, Mostly
I'm not quite back 100%, but I feel so much better. My head didn't explode, and I can breathe again, so I guess that means I am getting better. Thank you all for the prayers and well-wishes.
From what I hear it is spring almost everywhere else. I cannot wait for this slush and mud to disappear! I like it though. Alabama's spring was something like the world waking up to a raucous alarm clock; it went from winter to summer too suddenly. Here, I can sense nature yawning and stretching and quietly contemplating the work to be done in the time ahead.
That's how I prefer to wake up, myself.
God bless!
From what I hear it is spring almost everywhere else. I cannot wait for this slush and mud to disappear! I like it though. Alabama's spring was something like the world waking up to a raucous alarm clock; it went from winter to summer too suddenly. Here, I can sense nature yawning and stretching and quietly contemplating the work to be done in the time ahead.
That's how I prefer to wake up, myself.
God bless!
Friday, March 9, 2007
Sinus Infection
Well, my "mild" cold turned into a full-blown sinus infection; that's where I've been all week. At least it makes the pregnancy-related nausea seem not so bad. Thankfully I have the feeling that today was the turning point, and I will start getting better.
It's too bad, too, because today was absolutely beautiful. We got up close to 50 degrees with clear, sunny skies. Chuck and the kids were very industrious; they fixed up a little trailer we bought (it is actually the back of a pick-up that is probably older than our parents!), took a run into town for the tag, went to the dump, and cleaned out the garage. I, on the other hand, shook out the rugs in the mud room. Then I took a nap.
I hope everybody else is feeling well and enjoying a beautiful weekend.
God bless!
It's too bad, too, because today was absolutely beautiful. We got up close to 50 degrees with clear, sunny skies. Chuck and the kids were very industrious; they fixed up a little trailer we bought (it is actually the back of a pick-up that is probably older than our parents!), took a run into town for the tag, went to the dump, and cleaned out the garage. I, on the other hand, shook out the rugs in the mud room. Then I took a nap.
I hope everybody else is feeling well and enjoying a beautiful weekend.
God bless!
Monday, March 5, 2007
Pictures from Texas
My Sweetie took the hint, and I have some pictures to share. First we have the result of many hours of safety training.
This picture shows what has to be the only good thing about having to be at work while most of the rest of the world is sleeping. A beautiful sunrise:
While we were dealing with snow storms, he got stuck in a sand storm. If you look closely, you will see the sign to a Wal-Mart across the street, but you cannot see the Wal-Mart.
This picture shows what has to be the only good thing about having to be at work while most of the rest of the world is sleeping. A beautiful sunrise:
God bless!
Chuck's Coming Home!
We thought he'd be able to fly in yesterday, but we are going to get Chuck from the airport in just a little while. Poor Chuck; he's coming home to a wife and kids who are sick, and a house that shows the effects of mild neglect over the last week. He's not feeling so hot, either. It's a good thing misery loves company. He took some great pictures that I hope he'll put in Photobucket so I can share them here. (Imagine him skateboarding on top of a wind turbin almost 300 feet in the air... pretty cool!)
God bless!
God bless!
Sunday, March 4, 2007
A Note About Comments
Dear Visitors,
As the owner of this blog, I claim the right and responsibility to delete any comment that I find inappropriate or offensive. If you want to post such things, do it on your own blog!
God bless!
As the owner of this blog, I claim the right and responsibility to delete any comment that I find inappropriate or offensive. If you want to post such things, do it on your own blog!
God bless!
Saturday, March 3, 2007
The Long Answer to Question Three
Now for the long answer.
The whole premise of the Roe vs. Wade case was that a poor, young woman was seeking an abortion after being the victim of a gang rape. Norma McCorvey, the (in)famous Ms. Roe has since come out with the truth; it was all a lie. She says that she was used by her lawyers and the organization who hired them. She was never raped, and she never had an abortion. In fact, by the time the Supreme Court issued its ruling, her child was two years old.
Since 1973, there have been approximately 48 million surgical abortions performed in the United States. No more than 1% of all these abortions have been performed because of rape and less than .5% were performed after cases of incest. Even setting aside the moral issues, it simply does not make sense to base this country's extremely liberal abortion policy on the very rarest of circumstances. (Any woman can get an abortion in this country at any point during pregnancy and for any reason, even against the wishes of the baby's father. By far, the majority of abortions are performed because of the opinion that a baby would be too inconvenient or too expensive. I do not necessarily believe this is always the actual opinion of the mother; I believe many women are convinced of this by coercive partners, relatives, friends, and medical providers.)
Because this situation is so rare, it is hard to find statistics on the outcomes of rape/incest victims who become pregnant to compare those who had abortions with those who did not. However, two studies have been done on small samples of women who became pregnant as a result of sexual assault. Very few of these women said they actually wanted an abortion. Of the women who had abortions 95% of them later regretted the decision. They reported that at the time they felt pressured by others, and they reported that the abortion made them feel violated even further. Of the women who did not choose abortion, not one regretted giving birth to her child.
So there is good evidence that abortion is not the best answer for the woman. And, of course, it is NEVER a good solution for the child. An unborn baby is no more or less a living human being because of the circumstances of his conception. Not even the rapist is given the death penalty! Why should an innocent baby be sentenced to death for her father's actions?
As for the issue of very young girls getting pregnant, statistics show that it is better emotionally and physically for a teenager to carry the pregnancy to term rather than abort. Girls who had an abortion were five times more likely to seek help for psychological and emotional problems than girls who carried their "unwanted" pregnancies to term. They were more likely to be depressed or suicidal and more prone to substance abuse. Teenagers also suffer the physical and medical side effects of abortion much more frequently than older women. Clearly, abortion is not the best solution to the problem of "teen mothers". I am astounded at how many people actually seem to think that abortion is a better option than adoption for these girls! They will say it is an unfair burden for the girl to give away her baby and then "never know" her child. I believe it would be a far heavier burden for her to know (or later realize) that she had killed her child!
As I stated in my short answer, by far the most important reason to oppose abortion regardless of the circumstances is because an unborn baby is a living human being, and you cannot justify taking an innocent human life, ever. Science is proving more and more the humanity of the unborn, and I think this is only appropriate at a time when politically that humanity has been under attack.
Lord Jesus, have mercy on us.
I used several internet sources for this little "essay" of mine, including Reasons U.S. Women Have Abortions by the Guttmacher Institute; links in the "Research" section at AfterAbortion.org ; and finally several informative links at Abortion- the UnChoice.
The whole premise of the Roe vs. Wade case was that a poor, young woman was seeking an abortion after being the victim of a gang rape. Norma McCorvey, the (in)famous Ms. Roe has since come out with the truth; it was all a lie. She says that she was used by her lawyers and the organization who hired them. She was never raped, and she never had an abortion. In fact, by the time the Supreme Court issued its ruling, her child was two years old.
Since 1973, there have been approximately 48 million surgical abortions performed in the United States. No more than 1% of all these abortions have been performed because of rape and less than .5% were performed after cases of incest. Even setting aside the moral issues, it simply does not make sense to base this country's extremely liberal abortion policy on the very rarest of circumstances. (Any woman can get an abortion in this country at any point during pregnancy and for any reason, even against the wishes of the baby's father. By far, the majority of abortions are performed because of the opinion that a baby would be too inconvenient or too expensive. I do not necessarily believe this is always the actual opinion of the mother; I believe many women are convinced of this by coercive partners, relatives, friends, and medical providers.)
Because this situation is so rare, it is hard to find statistics on the outcomes of rape/incest victims who become pregnant to compare those who had abortions with those who did not. However, two studies have been done on small samples of women who became pregnant as a result of sexual assault. Very few of these women said they actually wanted an abortion. Of the women who had abortions 95% of them later regretted the decision. They reported that at the time they felt pressured by others, and they reported that the abortion made them feel violated even further. Of the women who did not choose abortion, not one regretted giving birth to her child.
So there is good evidence that abortion is not the best answer for the woman. And, of course, it is NEVER a good solution for the child. An unborn baby is no more or less a living human being because of the circumstances of his conception. Not even the rapist is given the death penalty! Why should an innocent baby be sentenced to death for her father's actions?
As for the issue of very young girls getting pregnant, statistics show that it is better emotionally and physically for a teenager to carry the pregnancy to term rather than abort. Girls who had an abortion were five times more likely to seek help for psychological and emotional problems than girls who carried their "unwanted" pregnancies to term. They were more likely to be depressed or suicidal and more prone to substance abuse. Teenagers also suffer the physical and medical side effects of abortion much more frequently than older women. Clearly, abortion is not the best solution to the problem of "teen mothers". I am astounded at how many people actually seem to think that abortion is a better option than adoption for these girls! They will say it is an unfair burden for the girl to give away her baby and then "never know" her child. I believe it would be a far heavier burden for her to know (or later realize) that she had killed her child!
As I stated in my short answer, by far the most important reason to oppose abortion regardless of the circumstances is because an unborn baby is a living human being, and you cannot justify taking an innocent human life, ever. Science is proving more and more the humanity of the unborn, and I think this is only appropriate at a time when politically that humanity has been under attack.
Lord Jesus, have mercy on us.
I used several internet sources for this little "essay" of mine, including Reasons U.S. Women Have Abortions by the Guttmacher Institute; links in the "Research" section at AfterAbortion.org ; and finally several informative links at Abortion- the UnChoice.
Friday, March 2, 2007
I'll never say that again!
We haven't gotten nearly as much snow as was predicted, so that's good I suppose.
Oh, man, was that a dumb thing to say! When I got up this morning there was a drift of snow in the shape of a wave reaching nearly halfway up the garage door! (I wish my digital camera was working!) The lower part of our driveway got plowed, but I'll still have lots to shovel before we can go anywhere. If we get more than a couple of inches tonight we will be unable to get out over the weekend. Odds are, we're gonna get snowed in. Such is life in the UP.
The children are doing a little better, but still tired and coughing a lot. I've had a cough, but so far that's it. We're all chugging lots of water and EM's. Luckily I made it to the grocery store a few days ago and bagged oranges were on sale for about a dollar a pound. Some of the fortune I might otherwise spend on doctors and worthless medicines, I spend on apples, oranges, and bananas!
God bless!
Oh, man, was that a dumb thing to say! When I got up this morning there was a drift of snow in the shape of a wave reaching nearly halfway up the garage door! (I wish my digital camera was working!) The lower part of our driveway got plowed, but I'll still have lots to shovel before we can go anywhere. If we get more than a couple of inches tonight we will be unable to get out over the weekend. Odds are, we're gonna get snowed in. Such is life in the UP.
The children are doing a little better, but still tired and coughing a lot. I've had a cough, but so far that's it. We're all chugging lots of water and EM's. Luckily I made it to the grocery store a few days ago and bagged oranges were on sale for about a dollar a pound. Some of the fortune I might otherwise spend on doctors and worthless medicines, I spend on apples, oranges, and bananas!
God bless!
Thursday, March 1, 2007
March Comes in Like a Lion
"March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb." That was the lesson of the day back in elementary school. I can't remember now what year it was, maybe first grade, but I am certain the date was March 1st. We made masks out of paper plates mounted on Popsicle sticks. One side sported orange and yellow yarn around a lion face. The other side was the smiling face of a sheep made more realistic with an adornment of (what else) cotton balls. I don't honestly know the educational value of such an exercise, but it sure has stuck with me after all these years!
The weather today certainly has been roaring like a lion. I've rarely seen such sustained winds aside from oncoming hurricanes! It gets the cover to our dryer vent a-flappin' which I just know is going to drive me crazy all night tonight. Sometimes there are gusts so strong I almost expect to see the curtains billow away from the closed windows! We haven't gotten nearly as much snow as was predicted, so that's good I suppose. I've been warned that the Upper Peninsula always gets a big storm on St. Patrick's Day. The lady at the post office yesterday was joking that maybe this is "our St. Paddy's Day Storm" coming two weeks early.
Chuck has been promised a couple of weeks off after he gets home. Now, if we can just get him home! Between the weather up here, and the weather down there, it might be difficult. But I guess it is just as well that he's missing out on all the "fun" here. The kids have been passing around a cold the last few days, and all you parents know just how much fun he's missing! Joseph had a night terror last night when his fever broke. He's done that before, but it scares me every time! I think the worst of it is over now; unless I get sick, that is. If I get laid up with a cold things could get ugly around here pretty quick! But so far so good. Thank God for EM's!
God bless!
The weather today certainly has been roaring like a lion. I've rarely seen such sustained winds aside from oncoming hurricanes! It gets the cover to our dryer vent a-flappin' which I just know is going to drive me crazy all night tonight. Sometimes there are gusts so strong I almost expect to see the curtains billow away from the closed windows! We haven't gotten nearly as much snow as was predicted, so that's good I suppose. I've been warned that the Upper Peninsula always gets a big storm on St. Patrick's Day. The lady at the post office yesterday was joking that maybe this is "our St. Paddy's Day Storm" coming two weeks early.
Chuck has been promised a couple of weeks off after he gets home. Now, if we can just get him home! Between the weather up here, and the weather down there, it might be difficult. But I guess it is just as well that he's missing out on all the "fun" here. The kids have been passing around a cold the last few days, and all you parents know just how much fun he's missing! Joseph had a night terror last night when his fever broke. He's done that before, but it scares me every time! I think the worst of it is over now; unless I get sick, that is. If I get laid up with a cold things could get ugly around here pretty quick! But so far so good. Thank God for EM's!
God bless!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
